Call for bigger contribution of SMEs into export promotion in Belarus

MINSK, 24 April (BelTA) – We need to engage small and medium-sized businesses in export promotion more actively, President Alexander Lukashenko said in his State of the Nation Address on 24 April, BelTA has learned.

“We need to involve small and medium-sized businesses into the export promotion programs. This is particularly true for services sectors. Tourism, healthcare, sport are those sectors where we are actually marking time, although there are many opportunities for export growth,” the head of state noted.

Alexander Lukashenko noted that Belarus exports two-thirds of what it produces. “Hence, our well-being depend on external markets. This thought should be constantly on the mind of managers. Last year I told the ambassadors that their performance will be estimated, first of all, by the export performance. This also applies to other ministries and heads of enterprises. All of them carry equal responsibility,” the president said.

In order to increase the presence in foreign markets Belarusian enterprises need to integrate into global and regional supply chains, Alexander Lukashenko said. “To achieve this, we need to establish high-quality production of the final product in Belarus. We can establish this sort of production complying with the standards of the most developed countries either on our own or together with foreign investors,” the president said.